In this Friday, Jan. 23, 2015 file photo, Chinese e-commerce giant Alibaba Group founder and executive chairman Jack Ma speaks during the panel session "An Insight, An Idea" at the World Economic Forum in ... more

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Alibaba, the Chinese Amazon, might pick Seattle for U.S. HQ

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Alibaba, the e-commerce giant based in China, may establish a U.S. headquarters in Seattle,

The company, which opened an office in Seattle last year, might want to set up a headquarters in Amazon's hometown for the easy of recruiting staff and for rents lower than in such tech hubs as San Francisco, the Puget Sound Business Journal reports.

Jamie Boyd, a managing director of Cascadia Capital, Seattle's largest investment bank, told the Business Journal:

"I've heard through multiple sources that Alibaba is likely setting up its USA headquarters in Seattle, which would be a very interesting move given Seattle is home to their largest western competitor, Amazon."

"Alibaba is the most popular destination for online shopping, in the world's fastest growing e-commerce market. Transactions on its online sites totaled $248 billion last year, more than those of eBay and Amazon.com combined.," The Wall Street Journal reported.